Protecting Your Intellectual Property: Tips for Small Business Owners

Most small business owners realize that they need to invest in security measures that protect their physical assets, such as their business property and employees; however, what many small business owners overlook are their intellectual assets. These assets include written documents, articles, manuals, procedural documents, innovations and other creative products that were produced by the proprietors of the business or by the business's employees. These products are not protected by regular insurance. In order to ensure that someone else does not use these assets without permission and without compensating you for their use, you need to take specific steps to establish your ownership of their rights.

Copyright Information

Copyrights are the most common intellectual protective measures taken by small businesses. Copyrights apply to written materials, recorded materials, music, software and other similar products. It is important to copyright these items so that you can prove in a court of law that you were the originator of the material and that all rights for distribution are solely yours. Having this protection enables you to force unauthorized users of your materials to stop using your materials, as well as collect sizable fees from them for their unauthorized use.

Copyrights are easy to get. All you need to do is to fill out a very simple form, which is provided by the U.S. Copyright Officer, pay a small fee (usually under $100) and submit a copy of the material. You will receive a certificate of your copyright in the mail in about six months after you submit your paperwork; however, your protection is established from the date you submit your materials to the Copyright Office. Your protection will usually span your lifetime plus 70 years.

Trademarks and Patents

If you have a product or technology that you want to protect, then you need to file for a patent. The patenting process is very time consuming, and it is more complicated than the copyright process. When I help clients to begin their patenting process, I recommend that they search the patent database themselves, as opposed to hiring someone else, as this gives them the chance to see how similar or different their product is from others that have been registered. In order to complete the patent process, you need more than an idea. You need something substantial down on paper, e.g. a schematic, software program or background research.

Once you have determined that your product is substantially different from other products, it is a good idea to then start working with a patent attorney. They will be able to complete all the paper work, hearings and other legal leg work that is necessary to patent a product or technology. While a copyright only takes six months to complete, a patent can take years to complete, and it can cost thousands of dollars.

Trademarks and patents both are filed through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Trademarks are symbols used to distinguish your company and products from other companies'. Trademarking sayings, graphics and in some cases the name of your business are essential to preventing other companies from using your success to their advantage. The process for filing a trademark includes searching for currently registered trademarks and filling out paperwork. Before you start this process, I would highly recommend reading about what a trademark is and what steps to take to ensure your trademark application will be accepted.

Sources:

http://www.copyright.gov/

http://www.uspto.gov/